June 14th, 2025.
South Korea, Tongyeong – 9:23 pm
Hyun-Woo and Min-Seo both sat outside his house. The grass blades moved smoothly with the light breeze. Both of them were now wearing pajamas. They looked up at the night sky and stared at the stars for a moment. Everything felt so calm and relaxing. It wasn't too cold or too hot—just right. Suddenly, Hyun-Woo got a text on his phone. He reached for his phone to check it.
"From: Big Boss, Kang-Dae
Are you busy right now?"
Hyun-Woo replied, "No." Just a second later, he got a call from him. He sighed as he answered. Min-Seo looked over in curiosity. "What is it, Kang-Dae?" Hyun-Woo asked as he put the call on speaker. "About the mission tomorrow—you contacted me in the morning asking if the event was still going to take place in the club because of the massacre."
"Uh-huh, I did. So do you have an answer now?" he replied, Min-Seo paying close attention. "The event will still be taking place in the club. That's all. Have a good night, Hyun-Woo. Work your ass off tomorrow." Before he could hang up, Hyun-Woo asked a question. "Wait, Kang-Dae. How do you know so much about this mission? It's like they aren't even trying to keep it hidden."
"You're very wrong. They're actually doing an amazing job at keeping this event hidden. It's just that we have a double agent of sorts giving us all this information," he answered before hanging up.
He sighed before putting his phone away and looking at Min-Seo. "You heard him—we're still going to the club."
"I did. That's what I was most worried about. I probably wouldn't have been able to sleep if we had never gotten an answer," she said. It was obvious her body was much more relaxed now. Hyun-Woo softly smiled as he noticed the small change in her posture. "Let's worry about the mission tomorrow. We've spent the last days worrying. Let's make every second of this day something nice."
She smiled as she scooted closer to him. She rested her head on his shoulder, and they looked at the stars. "Isn't it crazy that there are more stars in the universe than sand? We really don't matter at all, if you think about it," Hyun-Woo said.
"The universe may be bigger than we can comprehend, but that doesn't mean we don't matter. I mean, you are right—we don't matter in the large scale of things. But on our scale, all of us matter a lot. Like, you matter to me a lot, and I do to you as well, right?" she replied.
Hyun-Woo smiled as he looked over at Min-Seo. "Yes, you're the person who matters to me the most." Min-Seo smiled before grabbing him by the ear and whispering, "I better be… I love you!" He sighed before softly smiling, "I love you more, love."
June 14th, 2025.
South Korea, Tongyeong – 10:44 pm
The two of them now lay down on their bed. The TV was turned on and was playing the movie Fallen Angels. Their bodies touched, shoulder to shoulder. They weren't saying a word, but it was obvious some tension was building.
"Do you want to do the thing?" Min-Seo asked with a serious look, and he looked at her, but he wasn't flustered in the slightest. "This time, you aren't saying that to tease me or because you actually want to do it. I can tell. Your tone and the look in your eyes are different," Hyun-Woo said, and this shocked her. Her eyes widened as tears began pouring out. They flooded her eyes, yet her expression remained serious.
"Huh?" she said as she slowly touched under her eyes, feeling the tears flowing down. "How'd you know, Hyun-Woo?" He softly smiled as he wiped her tears away, "Your tone was way different. It was closer to the one you have when you're about to cry. It's pretty obvious. Love, why are you crying?"
"Honey, this mission sounds to be our biggest and most difficult one yet. And I know you told me everything was going to be fine, but I'm still worried about losing you. I can't lose any more loved ones…" she said before wrapping her arms around him and pulling him in close.
"Love, everything will be okay. If you want, I won't go to the mission so you don't have to worry," he replied as he hugged her back, her tears getting all over his shoulder.
"I'll kill you if you cancel the mission. We're doing it, and coming out alive. Okay?" He softly nodded as he placed his hand behind her head and pulled her deeper into his shoulder. "Okay, we'll complete it."
Min-Seo backed away and looked deeply into his eyes. "Don't make sexual jokes to try and hide your feelings, love. Be open with me, please?" Hyun-Woo said in a soft tone before wiping away more of her tears."I can't promise anything…"
"That's fine, but please try a bit harder," he replied as she wiped away the last remaining bits of her tears.
After some time, they went back to watching the movie. And as the movie continued to play, the two of them fell asleep.
June 15th, 2025.
South Korea, Tongyeong – 12:12 am
On the rooftop of a building, a man wearing a puffy jacket stood—it was Kang-Dae. Suddenly, his phone began ringing, and he picked up before putting it to his ear. "Kang-Dae, where the hell are you?" There was no response for a few seconds. The man on the other side asked again, "Where the hell are you?"
"Why do you care where I am?" he asked. "We need you now! Come back to the organization building." Kang-Dae waited a moment before answering again, "Why do you need me?"
"Don't question the higher-ups, you imbecile! Just come back to the building—we need you. That's an order. If you don't follow it, there will be consequences." Kang-Dae sighed, "Fine. I'll be there in an hour," he said before hanging up.
He put his phone away and looked down at the city, almost as if memories from the past flooded his thoughts. A tear dripped down from his eye and fell from the building.
June 15th, 2025.
South Korea, Tongyeong – 2:14 am
Zhi Yi An looked out the window of the highest floor in the hotel, his eyes were filled with ambition and what could only be described as a coldness. He clenched his fist before looking down at it, "I will be my own light soon enough."
Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked back and saw Seokjin. He smiled at Zhi Yi, "You will be your own light soon enough. But not just any light—the brightest one. Just keep doing as I tell you."
Zhi Yi nodded before looking out the window again, and suddenly he punched it. It all shattered, and the broken pieces fell down to the streets and sidewalks, where they shattered even further.
"My own light."